7 OKR examples for Startup Growth

What are Startup Growth OKRs?

The Objective and Key Results (OKR) framework is a simple goal-setting methodology that was introduced at Intel by Andy Grove in the 70s. It became popular after John Doerr introduced it to Google in the 90s, and it's now used by teams of all sizes to set and track ambitious goals at scale.

Crafting effective OKRs can be challenging, particularly for beginners. Emphasizing outcomes rather than projects should be the core of your planning.

We have a collection of OKRs examples for Startup Growth to give you some inspiration. You can use any of the templates below as a starting point for your OKRs.

If you want to learn more about the framework, you can read more about the OKR meaning online.

Best practices for managing your Startup Growth OKRs

Generally speaking, your objectives should be ambitious yet achievable, and your key results should be measurable and time-bound (using the SMART framework can be helpful). It is also recommended to list strategic initiatives under your key results, as it'll help you avoid the common mistake of listing projects in your KRs.

Here are a couple of best practices extracted from our OKR implementation guide 👇

Tip #1: Limit the number of key results

The #1 role of OKRs is to help you and your team focus on what really matters. Business-as-usual activities will still be happening, but you do not need to track your entire roadmap in the OKRs.

We recommend having 3-4 objectives, and 3-4 key results per objective. A platform like Tability can run audits on your data to help you identify the plans that have too many goals.

Tability's audit dashboard will highlight opportunities to improve OKRs

Tip #2: Commit to the weekly check-ins

Don't fall into the set-and-forget trap. It is important to adopt a weekly check-in process to get the full value of your OKRs and make your strategy agile – otherwise this is nothing more than a reporting exercise.

Being able to see trends for your key results will also keep yourself honest.

Tability's check-ins will save you hours and increase transparency

Tip #3: No more than 2 yellow statuses in a row

Yes, this is another tip for goal-tracking instead of goal-setting (but you'll get plenty of OKR examples below). But, once you have your goals defined, it will be your ability to keep the right sense of urgency that will make the difference.

As a rule of thumb, it's best to avoid having more than 2 yellow/at risk statuses in a row.

Make a call on the 3rd update. You should be either back on track, or off track. This sounds harsh but it's the best way to signal risks early enough to fix things.

Building your own Startup Growth OKRs with AI

While we have some examples below, it's likely that you'll have specific scenarios that aren't covered here. There are 2 options available to you.

Use our free OKRs generator
Use Tability, a complete platform to set and track OKRs and initiatives
including a GPT-4 powered goal generator

Best way to track your Startup Growth OKRs

OKRs without regular progress updates are just KPIs. You'll need to update progress on your OKRs every week to get the full benefits from the framework. Reviewing progress periodically has several advantages:

It brings the goals back to the top of the mind
It will highlight poorly set OKRs
It will surface execution risks
It improves transparency and accountability

We recommend using a spreadsheet for your first OKRs cycle. You'll need to get familiar with the scoring and tracking first. Then, you can scale your OKRs process by using a proper OKR-tracking tool for it.

Tability's Strategy Map makes it easy to see all your org's OKRs

If you're not yet set on a tool, you can check out the 5 best OKR tracking templates guide to find the best way to monitor progress during the quarter.

Startup Growth OKRs templates

We've covered most of the things that you need to know about setting good OKRs and tracking them effectively. It's now time to give you a series of templates that you can use for inspiration!

We've added many examples of Startup Growth Objectives and Key Results, but we did not stop there. Understanding the difference between OKRs and projects is important, so we also added examples of strategic initiatives that relate to the OKRs.

Hope you'll find this helpful!

OKRs to successfully launch startup

Successfully launch startup
Secure initial funding of at least $50K
Set up pitches with interested investors
Develop a detailed business plan highlighting investment value
Identify potential investors in the chosen industry
Achieve steady user growth rate of 20% month on month
Identify and target a specific user demographic via social media campaigns
Implement a customer referral program with incentives
Optimize SEO strategies for increased organic user traffic
Onboard first 100 users
Provide personalized support for early users
Launch marketing campaign to attract initial users
Develop a comprehensive, user-friendly onboarding guide

Track these OKRs

OKRs to get a solid growth engine

Create a solid growth engine
Increase weekly leads by 30%
We're getting 0.1 leads/active customer/week
30% of new leads start a trial

growth marketing saas startups

Track these OKRs

OKRs to launch a high growth and profitable tech startup

Launch a high growth and profitable tech startup
Develop a minimum viable product, tested and approved by a focus group of 25 participants
Create and test the product with focus group
Implement changes based on feedback
Identify key features for the minimum viable product
Secure funding worth at least $1M from reliable investors
Schedule and conduct persuasive pitch meetings with investors
Develop a compelling business proposal showcasing ROI
Research and create a list of potential reliable investors
Assemble a cohesive team of 5 skilled professionals for key operations
Identify required skills for key operations team roles
Source potential candidates through networking or recruiting
Conduct interviews and select final team members

startup-launch secure-funding product-developer operations-team-member product-development-team investor-relations-team

Track these OKRs

OKRs to scale the startup to achieve unicorn status

Scale the startup to achieve unicorn status
Expand customer base by acquiring 100 new clients
Identify target market segments and prioritize based on potential revenue and fit
Develop targeted marketing campaigns to attract potential clients from identified segments
Establish strategic partnerships with complementary businesses to leverage their customer base
Implement referral program to encourage existing clients to refer friends and colleagues
secure $10 million in funding from investors
Identify and approach potential investors with a tailored and persuasive investment proposal
Develop and demonstrate a solid growth strategy and execution plan to convince investors
Create a compelling pitch deck highlighting the market potential, competitive advantage, and financial projections
Conduct thorough due diligence to ensure investors' trust by providing accurate financial information and projections
Increase monthly revenue by 30%
Achieve a user retention rate of 80%
Implement personalized notifications and incentives to encourage users to stay active
Improve user onboarding process to enhance engagement and reduce churn
Continuously analyze user behavior data to optimize the app experience and prevent attrition
Conduct regular user surveys to identify pain points and address them promptly